The present invention relates to a blade handle or holder which allows for the sequential insertion of a plurality of blades for a single use of each blade with subsequent ejection of the blade from the handle for insertion of an additional blade. More particularly, the invention relates to holders for surgical blades of a precise configuration, and to the blades so configured. Also, this invention involves the handling of contaminated blades in the surgical environment.
As practitioners in the art of surgical blades are aware, AIDS, hepatitis and related contagious diseases present in the blood of patients has made the practice of surgery and medicine, in general, more dangerous than was the case several years ago, simply because one must be extremely careful to avoid contamination of his or her own blood with the blood of an infected patient. For this reason, many devices have been developed for handling instruments to avoid contaminated sharp edges or points which have been contaminated with the blood of infected persons. This is particularly true in the surgical environment where surgical blades are used in great quantity and must be disposed of without being touched, if possible, and certainly without the user being cut or having his or her skin punctured in any way.
Thus, it is important to be able to insert and remove a blade from a holder for the blade, after use, without the user having to actually touch the blade, if possible. If it is necessary to touch the blade, then it is appropriate to touch only the tang portion of the blade and avoid any contact with the sharp edge. It is to this environment that the present invention is directed.
It is equally important in the surgical environment to have the blade held in a holder against any movement relative to the holder. This invention includes blades modified to accommodate a specifically configured holder for this purpose, to the holders, and to the combination of holder and blade. The holder includes opposed cooperating surfaces which capture the blade in three dimensions, so to speak, against any movement in the holder. On the other hand, the blade is configured to meet precisely these opposed cooperating surfaces.
Many arrangements have been developed to obviate the problems discussed above, and to provide blade holders which will hold the blade precisely in the position desired, which will provide ease of insertion so that the user does not cut themselves prior to any use of the blade and/or holder, and that the blade is firmly held against any wobbling or movement in the handle, which would reduce the effectiveness of any surgery being performed with such a blade.
Arrangements have been provided in the past wherein elongated blade holders have been provided of the kind discussed here wherein the two parts of the holder pivot relative to each other for insertion of the blade into the holder and for holding the blade in place. These arrangements have a pivot axis at one end of the two parts forming the holder. With such an arrangement, the user cannot handle removal of the blade single-handedly since it is necessary to use both hands for handling the two pivoting parts. Representative of such arrangements are U.S. Pat. No. 2,245,096 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,906,625. Both of these patents have the pivot axis positioned at the end opposite the end where the blade is inserted.
Other devices of the kind discussed herein include those in which the pivot axis is positioned centrally of the ends of the blade holder. Again, with such arrangements the user must use both hands to manipulate the two parts around the central pivot axis in order to insert and remove the blade. Representative of such prior art patents are U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,478,668 and 2,637,105.
In order to facilitate a single-handed operation for surgical blade holders and the cooperating blade of the kind discussed herein, it is necessary to position the pivot axis adjacent to the position of the blade during use. This enables the user to have a substantially long non-pivoting handle portion to grip for opening and closing the device for insertion and ejection of the blade. Representative of such arrangements are U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,039,443 and 1,914,153. Both of these patents use a separate rotating ejector arrangement which pivots adjacent to the blade for causing the blade to become "unwedged" from its use position for removal of the blade. However, the ejector cams the blade only partially out of its holder arrangement. The user must, after this camming action, grip the blade for final removal from the handle thus risking a cut from the contaminated blade.
With this invention, by contrast, a blade holder is provided for surgical blades which allows the user to open and close the device single-handedly. The arrangement includes a fixed non-rotating half of the handle which has positioned in the blade position thereof, a boss which is configured to be the same as the opening in the tang of the blade to be inserted. As a further feature, this portion of the holder is indented to the same configuration as the blade tang for easy reception of the blade. For this reason, the blade may be positioned on the fixed portion of the handle of the invention.
At one end of the boss is a cooperating abutment which cooperates with the movable portion of the handle in closed position to capture the blade and lock it in a non movable position for use. The other end has a hook or cleat arrangement with an undercut surface which serves to positively position and hold one end of the blade. The opposed half of the blade holder has a distal or nose end that fits under the undercut of the cleat with the blade between. Thus, the user, single handedly, may close the device and wedge the blade in a fixed position effortlessly.
As a further feature of the holder portion of the combination in accordance with this invention, both portions of the holder have wedge features which mate in closed position to hold the ribbed edge of the blade of the invention. The blade portion of the combination herein, includes an opening of expanded width at one end to cooperate with the cleat on the holder. Also, at the very distal end of the expanded width opening is an extension in the hole of the blade which cooperates with a front or distal end of the cleat.
Once the blade has been used, the user may grip the handle, and with the thumb, move the movable portion of the handle open around the pivot axis which is adjacent to the blade. In doing so, the user also places the boss side of the fixed portion of the handle downwardly. For this reason, once the movable portion of the blade handle has been forced open by the thumb of the user, the blade simply falls out of the device into a container used for such purposes in order to contain contaminated sharp instruments. The user does not touch the blade at all once it has been used and contaminated.
As a further feature of the invention here, the blade holder of the invention is substantially flat and the two portions of the handle pivot relative to one another around a pivot with an axis perpendicular to the flat body of the holder, and positioned adjacent to the position of the blade, as discussed above. Moreover, the two portions pivot around this pivot axis in substantially the same longitudinal plane relative to each other. For this reason, the profile of the holder herein is a simplified flat device easily handled and maneuvered in difficult surgical procedures.
Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.